Pure Intentions
Chapter Nineteen: Unsophisticated

Before he had awoken her and gotten her up to drop her off at the hotel, Violet had remembered Shawn kissing her goodbye. She couldn't too be sure, though, because she had been half-asleep at the time (6:30 AM) and she could've still been dreaming. However, the words she had caught weren't imagined, and he indeed had stressed again that he was sorry for leaving – sorry for not telling her in proper advance – and that he loved her and would be back shortly.

After basically carrying her to his car, he had driven to the hotel, taken her to her room and deposited her back in bed (one that was not even close to being as warm or as relaxing as his). If she hadn't been so damn exhausted, she would have transported herself; after having first seen him to the airport, of course. But her body was in refusal to stay up and her mind wasn't aggressive enough to kick it in gear, so it was off back to sleep for her.

She was certain that he had also lingered in her room for a while, remembered feeling the mattress sink down near where she lay and though she couldn't keep her eyes open, she could have sworn she had somehow sensed his shadow looming over her.

"I'm so sorry," he had said, clearly still very remorseful. "But you understand."

He might have brought her hand up to place against his lips, but again, she really couldn't trust her bleary state. "I'll be back soon," his voice had sounded noticeably happier at this. "And I'll make it up to you, I promise."

He laughed then – she knew this for a fact; she could never have duplicated the sincere rasp and rumble of a sound. She figured it was because he had known that if she were up, she would have reminded him that missing out on the gala was no big deal. "Anyway," he grew serious again, "I'll miss you. And hey, who knows? If things...work out, maybe I can introduce you to the kids."

Another chuckle, followed by the accompanying silence of a grin. "They'd love you...as much as I do, I think...If not more."

She recalled him leaning forward to kiss her forehead. "I'll see you soon, Vi."

The bed lifted, deliberately soft footfalls could be heard, and then the door opened and shut. For a couple of hours more, she had dreamed of nothing but ovens, for some strange reason.

/

When she was conscious enough to recount these things, his words rang through her head repeatedly. But they were anything but weighty – they were happy and elevating...like wedding bells, if the comparison wasn't too loaded.

"...maybe I can introduce you to the kids."

That had stayed with her the longest. It was eye-opening, a bit. Kids...he had kids: a daughter and a son; from his wife, or ex-wife, rather.

She had thought about this often times before, contemplating how she had gotten involved with a "family man" and how she felt about it, but never allowed herself much time. It wasn't that difficult of a subject, really, it just felt...odd when she brought it back up and didn't think it'd be too good if she over thought things, which was what she was doing now, she realized.

Trying to get her mind off of Shawn's absence, she promptly got out of bed and dressed. Casually since this evening was what called for elegance, and styled her hair in a slightly messy bun. She'd have to take a shower later and make sure she didn't forget to apply conditioner this time. That occasional blunder never failed to tick her off. The only thing that annoyed her more was when Chris used her shampoo when they shared rooms, and God only knew how often that was.

Sighing, Violet sat down on foot of the newly-made bed and wondered about what she would do until time came for her to get ready. Evan would be busy, she presumed, and didn't want to bother him too much this week. Chris and Jay...she had no idea if they were even attending but went to join them for breakfast anyways, wanting the feeling of uncertainty to clear from her intuition.

/

After spending the earlier half the day with her brother and his boyfriend (who were attending, but individually due to their not ready to go public) and the latter by herself, it was came as a surprise when there came a knock at her door.

Confused as to who it'd be she opened it and out in the hallway stood a woman. She was about her age, give or take a few years, and assumedly worked for the WWE – judging by the shirt she was wearing that had their logo printed clearly on it and some kind of I.D hanging from her jeans. She was taller by an inch or two and had hair of a darkish russet mixed with burgundy, her skin a light mocha and eyes golden.

Still puzzled, Violet offered an amiable smile. "Hi, may I help you?"

The girl, whose name tag read 'Ellie', returned the expression despite looking a bit hesitant. "Are you Chris Jericho's sister?" Her voice was bubbly but professional which was something Violet couldn't help but admire.

"I am."

"Violet, right?"

She nodded, still smiling. "And who might you be?"

Ellie offered her hand to shake, her nails perfectly manicured, and shook the other girl's firmly. "Ellie, as you can see, WWE's make-up artist."

It took a minute for Violet to realize what this meant and to notice the case sitting at her feet but when she did, she immediately shook her head in disbelief. "He couldn't have...did he send you here?"

The look in Ellie's soft orbs confirmed it, seemingly a bit worried by her reaction. "Is something wrong?"

The Canadian shook her head again. "No, it's just...this is too much." She made a mental note to kick Chris' ass later while also thanking him for thinking of her like this. "I'm sorry but I can't...can't accept this..."

"He kind of paid me, though." That's why she looked so uneasy. Violet didn't want her to have to give him his money back or lie to him about doing what he had asked. She thought for a bit before standing aside to let her in and shut the door behind them.

"I'm perfectly capable of doing my own hair and make-up, Ellie," she said, watching as she set up her 'equipment' on the desktop surface and smiling at the perplexed expression that quickly appeared on the make-up artist's face. "Can I ask you something?" It was straight forward, but she had been told that she was one of the people who go for what they want with hardly any inhibitions.

Still put off a bit, Ellie relaxed. "Go ahead."

"Are you going to the gala tonight?" A plot was forming in her head, but as devious as it might sound, she was pretty sure it was wonderful and would turn out well.

"I don't have a date..."

"Don't worry," the younger Irvine assured, grinning wholeheartedly. "I don't have one either." She couldn't help but giggle at the apparent surprise she was met with. She was flattered, too. "But...I think I know someone who'd love to go with you."

Even wider eyes stared at her like she was speaking a lost and untranslatable language. "Trust me."

"I—"

"How about I do your hair and make-up, too."

This time she broke out into laughter because of Ellie's pure shock.

/

Two great things came out of Chris' sending Ellie to her room: in addition to having someone to help her get ready, Violet and Ellie made fast friends while they were doing each other's make-up and hair. It should've felt strange doing so because they hardly knew each other, but it didn't in the least bit, the conversations they made were animated and the atmosphere between them was comfortable.

Violet didn't look at the Maryland-native (whose full name was Elena Fletcher) as someone paid to make her look her best, but as someone she could talk to as a person, a friend. She had left so many behind in Canada and it felt so nice to share chats and laughter with someone who wasn't Chris or Shawn. They were enjoying each other's company and it was easy to let herself do so without worrying about boring anybody or exceeding a word limit.

The other bonus was that she was found a date for Evan. Not only was her new friend enviously gorgeous, but her heart and personality was catching. She was sweet, considerate, and genuine. The last time she checked Evan was those exact things and she was sure they'd mesh well romantically, if not platonically. Evan had mentioned about being too shy to go by himself and now he had someone amazing to accompany him.

By the time Ellie left to finish dressing up (after exchanging numbers and promising to talk again soon and see each other downstairs) she was feeling so delightful and airy that she wasn't entirely mourning the fact that Shawn wasn't there or that she didn't have a guy on her arm. Instead she slipped on her dress and waited excitedly for 9 P.M to arrive.

/

The gown she had chosen was considerably simple, but it kept to her figure and was delicately pretty enough to be counted as graceful. It was a sleeveless white satin dress with a sweetheart neckline and knee-length hem. There was hardly any detail on the bodice and the skirt was flowing. Her heels were plain as well – golden in colour and not very high – and the same could be said about her make-up (natural and not too heavy) and hair, though it was pinned in a side fishtail braid. She wasn't just feeling like a princess, per se; she felt as if the world beneath her wasn't just that, it was a cloud kingdom that she had somehow dreamed into existence.

When she entered the hotel's extravagant ballroom, her breath left her. The walls were covered in a soft pale-coloured stream of material and lavender strips of the same decor were placed in every corner, every feature of the room. Tables aligned the four walls and the remaining floor between them was most likely the dance floor.

Classy music poured from the sound system above and when she noticed this, she also noted the many chandeliers that adorned the ceiling and couldn't help but want to stay in one place and drink in how marvellously lovely it all was.

"Waiting for the sky to fall?"

Startled Violet turned to the joining voice beside her and smiled happily when she recognized who it belonged to. "Hi Evan!" she leaned in to hug him and felt so much more blissful when he rubbed her back ever-so familiarly.

"Vi," he hummed when they separated. "How are you?"

She glanced around again and then back at him. "Wonderful, thanks for asking, what about you?"

He cocked his head slightly, searching around her. "Where's Shawn?"

"He couldn't make it."

The high flier's brown irises hardened a bit at this though, mouth forming a lopsided line of deliberation. But before he could ask anything Violet put a hand on his shoulder, calming him. "Personal matters," she explained, indicating she was all right and that they hadn't had a falling out or anything. He nodded, and his gaze was directed to the doorway, where Ellie was now entering.

Unlike Violet's, Ellie's dress was to her calves and of a more taut fit. It was a plum shade and didn't drown out her complexion, instead making her glow and drawing focus to her voluptuous frame. Spotting the two, she gave a joyful grin and small wave, making her way to them.

"Is that her?" Evan sounded breathless. Violet's heart fluttered at the adorableness of the moment.

"Uh-huh." She couldn't help but come off as smug. She was so happy with what she had managed.

"She's beautiful."

Smirking, she watched the two greet each other and bit her lip self-satisfactorily. "Such a cute couple."

Once the attendees were gathered in the room, more and more people started getting up and dancing as the music remained light and rhythmical. For the most part Violet danced with Evan and Ellie, who were definitely hitting things off, and sometimes joined Jay since Chris was too busy idly chatting with his colleagues. However, when the music turned romantic and sentimental she punctually got off the dance floor to make more room for the couples and sat down at the table, usually checking her phone or passively keeping an eye on her brother or Ellie.

During one particular song that sounded suspiciously like Frank Sinatra, she checked her phone to find that it was vibrating and that someone was calling. Knowing full well who it was she pressed 'answer' and brought it to her ear, shifting to the back of the room to hear more clearly.

"Hey."

"Hi Vi." Just hearing him speak those two monosyllabic words made her willingly admit that she missed him more than she wanted to think about. "Having fun?"

"You bet." More than anything she missed his kissing her randomly and repeatedly. "What about you? What are you doing?"

"I'm," he exhaled, sounding bored and wistful, "thinking about you."

"I'm thinking about you too." It was kind of painful to hear him sound so sad. "I—"

"I have to go," he said abruptly, apologetically. "She's on the other line."

"You can say her name, you know. It won't kill you."

"I know."

Silence. "I miss you."

"I miss you too, more than anything, you know that."

"I do."

"I'll talk to tomorrow, OK? Have fun tonight...but not too much." He chuckled.

She rolled her eyes and scoffed playfully. "Without you? Impossible."

They both smiled. "I love you Vi."

"I love you too."

The rest of the night was a blur of dancing, champagne, and bathroom breaks. Violet had danced with all of her respective partners and now she was just lonesome because of all the songs 'meant for two' that had been playing as of late. Honestly, she loved seeing other pairs of couples sway to the melody that was perfect for that kind of showcasing, but she couldn't help but wish she could join in.

Evan and Ellie were having a great time, they even kissed a couple of times, and though Chris and Jay weren't quite as happy since they couldn't display their affection like that, even they had snuck in some endearing moments.

She had had so much fun this evening but she was ready to conclude the night. So as everyone else was still caught up in the romantic mood in the ballroom, she was outside in the empty lobby, wandering aimlessly out of boredom and pure habit.

Right as she began her tenth round of following the abstract pattern of the carpet that blanketed the floor of the foyer, there was a hand on her shoulder, the touch so gentle that the person – whoever it was – hadn't scared her. Thinking that it was either Chris or Jay, she turned around, a lazy beam on her lips.

But, to her extreme astonishment, it wasn't either.

"Mathew?"